Climate Change Overview

Country Summary

This page presents high-level information for Solomon Islands's climate zones and its seasonal cycle for mean temperature and precipitation for the latest climatology, 1991-2020. Climate zone classifications are derived from the Köppen-Geiger climate classification system, which divides climates into five main climate groups divided based on seasonal precipitation and temperature patterns. The five main groups are A (tropical), B (dry), C (temperate), D (continental), and E (polar). All climates except for those in the E group are assigned a seasonal precipitation sub-group (second letter).  Climate classifications are identified by hovering your mouse over the legend. A narrative overview of Solomon Islands's country context and climate is provided following the visualizations.

The Solomon Islands are an archipelago located in the Melanesian region of the Pacific, south-east of Papua New Guinea. Considered the “Amazon of the Seas”, the country’s expansive area covers a unique range of atolls, mountains, and salt-water lagoons, and has some of the world’s richest marine diversity. In 2019, Solomon Islands had a population of approximately 669,800 people. The country is one of the most vulnerable to climate change, due in large part to the fact that the majority of the population lives within 1.5 kilometer (km) of the coastline and the islands are regularly exposed to extreme rainfall events. 

Forests cover a large portion of the 28,000 square kilometers of land in Solomon Islands with the logging industry comprising the single biggest industry in the country. Agriculture is the backbone of the Solomon Islands rural economy with strong implications for future economic growth and human development. The quality and supply of water resources in Solomon Islands is increasingly becoming threatened by development activities including logging, large scale agriculture and the fast expanding land clearing for subsistence agriculture.

The country has a wealth of natural resources and unique geographic features but its geographic location in the Pacific Ring of fire and cyclone zone makes it very vulnerable to natural
disasters and extreme events. This vulnerability is exacerbated by its low socio-economic status which has also placed it in the UN list of Least Developed Countries. More than 80% of the population reside in low vulnerable coastal rural areas relying heavily on subsistence agriculture and fishing for food and income. Most coastal and inland villages do not have access to electricity and roads and government services to the rural areas are often limited.